Page 40 of The Tryout

My eyes widen at his implication.

“You’re with…”

“God’s gift to hockey, women, and the bar owners of Des Moines? Yup.”

Honestly, I feel bad for Novak, but I can’t help but think this is exactly what Briggs needs.

“No hard feelings, kid. After what happened last year, you deserve a good roommate.”

With that, he slides over to the window seat. As I turn to look out our own window at the cornfields flying past, I’m startled to find Avery looking at me.

“What happened last year?” he asks, pinning me with a serious glare.

The blush rises further up my face as I contemplate how to answer the question.

“Look, Finn, you can tell me what happened or I can walk to the back of this bus and ask Briggs myself.”

Nope. We won’t be having that.

If there is one thing I’ve noticed about Avery over the past couple of weeks, it’s that there is absolutely no love lost between him and Calvin Briggs. Which, fair. But Briggs is a third-round draft pick with a two-way contract and Avery went undrafted. I’ve been around hockey long enough to know that any conflict between the two isn’t going to end well for Avery.

“Since we were drafted at the same time and both came straight to Iowa, they decided we should room together.”

The serious look on Avery’s face remains. If anything, it gets a little more serious.

“And, well, I’m sure you know he thinks I’m a loser. Which, well, I am.”

“You definitely are not.”

I roll my eyes at him.

“Oh, please. I don’t drink, don’t party, don’t hook up. For a twenty-year-old, I am the definition of a loser.”

I may have my reasons, but that doesn’t mean it isn’t true.

“You’re a professional athlete who takes his work seriously, which is a damn sight better than I can say for Briggs.”

A little curl of delight unwinds in my stomach at this, at Avery seeing me as serious rather than boring.

His face tells me he’s not ready to let this drop, though. He looks as though he’s piecing together a particularly difficult puzzle.

“Wait…Banks asked me specifically if we would be okay rooming together. Said he was watching your back. He didn’t just say some shit, did he?”

My mouth hangs open, trying to find the words to make this conversation stop.

“Pulled our boy out of bed at three in the morning and shoved him into the hallway so he could fuck two girls from the bar.”

This is from Novak who, in spite of having a book open in front of him, doesn’t seem to have stopped listening to our conversation. My head whirls toward him, eyes begging him to stop. Meanwhile, Avery is rising in his seat, his face a thundercloud.

“Finn, let me out.”

I most definitely will not. Instead I put both hands on his shoulders and pull hard.

“I will not. I am not letting you get kicked off this team because Calvin Briggs is a fucking bully. Jesus, who would I have to room with then?”

This seems to calm Avery down slightly, but not as much as the next words out of Novak’s mouth.

“Besides, I think turnabout’s fair play, don’t you?”